Garment support



y 6, 1954 G. E. VALENTINE ETAL 2,682,669

GARMENT SUPPORT Filed Aug. 15, 1951 INVENTORS GEORGE ELLIS VALENTINE JOSEPH HARTZOG- EuBANKs BY M,

ATTORNEYS Patented July 6, 1954 GARMENT SUPPORT George Ellis Valentine and Joseph Hartzog Eubanks, Schuylkill Haven, Pa.

Application August 15, 1951, Serial No. 241,946

2 Claims.

This invention relates to garment supporters and has for its general object and purpose to provide a combined shirt hold-down and. trousers supporting device adapted to be worn inside the shirt and embodying certain novel features of construction whereby a substantial portion of the weight of the trousers is borne on the shoulders of the wearer, relieving the abdominal region of constrictive pressure, while permitting the wearer to assume various body postures without physical discomfort, and without dislodging the wearers shirt.

A more particular object of the invention resides in the provision of a flexible body encircling belt to which suspenders are attached and having a relatively thick strip of rubber or similar resilient material externally secured to the lower edge thereof so that when the ordinary outer trousers belt is applied immediately above said strip and tightened, the entire upper edge portion of the trousers will be supported by said strip while the shirt cannot work its way upwardly out of the trousers.

A further object of the invention is to provide a garment supporting device as above charac: terized which is of light weight, capable of easy and quick application and adjustment, and which may be constructed from low cost durable materials for economical manufacture and retail sale at a comparatively low price.

With the above and other objects in view the invention comprises the improved garment supporter and the construction and arrangement of its several parts, as will hereinafter be more fully described, illustrated in the accompanying drawing and subsequently defined in the subjoined claims.

In the drawing wherein I have disclosed one simple-and practical embodiment of the invention and in which similar reference characters designate corresponding parts throughout the several views:

Figure l is a perspective view showing the invention applied to the body of the wearer;

Figure 2 is a similar view of the body encircling 2, though snap fasteners or other conventional connecting means may be employed.

If desired the entire belt may be formed of a flexible but inelastic material and an elastic panel incorporated in the belt, to impart elasticity thereto.

The belt I0 is suspended from the shoulders of the wearer in loosely encircling relation about the body by means of suspender straps I5 having one of their ends sewn, cemented or otherwise permanently attached to the rear side of the belt. The other ends of said suspender straps and the front end portions of the belt are provided with detachable fastening elements indicated at I8 and said straps are also provided with the usual length adjusting means 20. It will be understood that the suspender straps may cross in the back, or that conventional suspenders of any type may be substituted for the construction shown.

On the other side of the belt l0, adjacent its lower edge, and preferably extending continuously throughout the length thereof, a trousers supporting strip 22, preferably of rubber, or sim ilar elastic material, is cemented or otherwisepermanently secured. As seen. in Figure 3, this strip 22 is preferably of rectangular form in crosssection and has a thickness which is several times that of the belt H] to provide a relatively wide ledge or abutment surface 24 for a purpose to be presently explained.

' If desired the continuous strip 22 may be re placed by a number of shorter sections to provide a series of abutment surfaces spaced as desiredaround the belt 10 or the strip may extend only partially around the belt. 7

After the user has donned his undershirt the belt I0 is then applied to loosely encircle the body just above the hips. The shoulder straps 16 are then brought upwardly and forwardly over the shoulders. The supporting device is entirely concealed by the outer shirt 26 which extends downwardly over and well below the strip 22.

After the ordinary trousers belt 28 is inserted through the usual guide loops provided on the upper edge portion of the trousers 3B, the wearer pulls the trousers upwardly until the belt 28 is located just above the strip 22, the tail portion of the shirt being tucked. smoothly downwardly over said strip within the trousers. When the belt 28 is tightened the trousers and shirt aresharply bent inwardly over the horizontal abutment surface 24 of the strip 22, as indicated at 32. Thus the strip 22 effectively prevents downward movement of the trousers and belt 28 relative to the belt as well as the upward movement of the shirt with respect to belt out of the trousers. The sharp angling of the trousers and shirt at 32 prevents relative movement thereof with respect to the belt I!) and strip 22 notwithstanding the fact that the belt is of flexible material. Adjustment of the belt 28 is stopped when the projecting ridge formed at 32 becomes evident so that little or no constricting pressure will be applied by the belt l0 upon the abdominal muscles. Thus a substantial portion of the weight of the trousers is borne upon the shoulders of the wearer. Also as the belt 10 may locally flex in a vertical plane above the strip 22 and the belt 28 assume various angular positions relative to said strip, the device affords maximum freedom of movement to the wearers body in different postures thereof, thus obviating any appreciable physical discomfort.

The effectiveness with which the device iunctions simultaneously as a trousers support and a shirt hold-down is due in large measure to the fact that the strip 22 in the preferred form of the invention extends substantially full length of the belt l0 and thus provides an effective support and gripping surface completely around the waist of the wearer.

In the case where the strip comprises a plurality of spaced sections, each of the sections will be of substantial length so as to provide surface rather than point contact with the trousers and shirt.

Both of these constructions materially decrease the degree of tightness necessary in the belt 28, result insubstantially complete concealment of the strip 22 and prevent localized pull out of the shirt tail.

If, for any reason, it is desirable to support a smaller portion of the weight of the trousers from the shoulders, the belt I!) may be tightened slightly. In this case it will be desirable to employ an elastic-belt or a belt having the elastic insert or panel [4 described above.

Since the strip 22 whether it is continuous, as shown, or made up of a plurality of disconnected sections is of rubber or similar elastic material, the strip and the belt will elongate or contract as a unit without discomfort to the wearer.

From the above description and the accompanying drawing the construction and several advantages of the garment supporter will be clearly understood. It will be seen that the device comprises a minimum number of simply constructed inexpensive parts and may be easily and quickly applied and adjusted on the wearers body without requiring the manipulation of numerous metallic elements. It will be apparent that the supporter does not materially detract from the neat appearance of the trousers about the waist of the wearer and adds but little to the weight of the trousers suspended from the wearers shoulders.

The invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or essential characteristics thereof. The present embodiment is therefore to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive, the scope of the invention being indicated by the appended claims rather than by the foregoing description, and all changes which come within the meaning and range of equivalency of the claims are therefore intended to be embraced therein.

What is claimed and desired to be secured by United States Letters Patent is:

1. A garment supporter for use with trousers and like garments having a waist band comprising a relatively wide band adapted to loosely encircle the body of a wearer, suspension means secured to the band and adapted to be worn over the shoulders to suspend the band beneath a shirt; and a rectangular supporting stri of appreciably greater thickness than the band secured to said band adjacent the lower edge thereof and having perpendicularly intersecting planar surfaces, respectively, parallel and transverse to said band whereby the shirt is frictionally engaged by said parallel planar surface and an outer face of said band and the shirt and the trouser waist band are sharply angled over said intersecting planar surfaces when a trouser belt, carried by the trouser waist band, is loosely secured above said strip to permit said transverse surface to support said shirt, trouser, and trouser belt.

2. A garment supporter as defined in claim 1 wherein said strip and band are of elastic material whereby said garment supporter automatically compensates for the wearers change in posture, and whereby said strip and band provide a high frictional engaging surface for said shirt.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 946,656 Cole Jan. 18, 1910 1,335,927 Ainsworth Apr. 6, 1920 1,642,046 Sauer Sept. 13, 1927 2,040,046 Groesbeck May 5, 1936 

